1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a display, or marking tag having an adhesive fastening strip for fastening the tag to an item. Such a display tag can generally be a price tag, or an information tag which is applied to a product in a retail outlet store, and which can have a backing strip coated with adhesive for attaching the tag to an item. The adhesive coating can be covered by a silicone coated backing strip to protect the adhesive from adhering to undesired articles. This silicone coated strip is removable due to the silicone coating, so that the adhesive side of the tag can be exposed for attaching the tag to a desired item. Such a tag could also include an anti-theft tag having a backing film or carrier foil for a security element and a recording medium glued to the security element.
2. Background Information
Display tags having the basic components as outlined above are generally known. In the most common form of tag, the laminated material, which exerts the adhesive effect generally has a layer of adhesive deposited on a printable recording medium, such as paper. Laminated materials having two layers of adhesive, a first layer in contact with the recording medium, and a second adhesive layer facing the removable carrier strip, wherein the second layer has a stronger adhesive characteristic, have been used to form such adhesive tags. Generally, the two layers of adhesive can be provided on opposite sides of an additional strip, which strip can then be adhered to the recording medium.
With a tag having the general laminated type of construction as discussed above, security elements have been disposed between the two layers forming the tag to form anti-theft tags. One such type of anti-theft tag of the type described above is disclosed by the German Published Application DE 42 23 394 A1. As disclosed thereby, such an tag can contain a magnetically soft, or weak, metal strip, which can serve as an active security element. Then, if the tag is carried through a security area bordered by a some sort of detection device, an alarm can be activated by the detection device indicating an unauthorized removal of the item from a protected area. In general, the security area can be bordered by a transmitter antenna and a receiver antenna, and the security element, such as when the tag is attached to an article to be protected against theft, can then be radiated by the transmitter antenna with a generated alternating electromagnetic field, so that the magnetically soft metal strip is remagnetized at the frequency of this field. Consequently, the tag can then emit an alternating electromagnetic field of its own, which can be received by the receiver antenna and trigger a theft alarm. Such tags can also be deactivated by a salesperson so that the alarm is not triggered.
Conventional tags of the type described above, can have a recording medium which is made of conventional or temperature-sensitive paper, which is generally translucent, or at least partly transparent. As such, the security element, i.e. the metal strip, which is located under the recording medium, can be readily visible. A potential shoplifter can thus easily identify this tag as an anti-theft tag, and may then either decide not to steal the article with the anti-theft tag and possibly instead select an article without such a tag, or possibly even remove the tag from the article before attempting to carry the article out of the store. In none of the above cases does the tag perform the function for which it was designed, namely to protect the merchandise in a store against theft.